State Department calls back South Sudan staff

The State Department announced on Friday that it is drawing down its staff in the U.S. Embassy in Juba, the South Sudan capital, because of the “deteriorating security situation” in South Sudan, ending consular services until further notice and recommending that all American citizens leave the young country immediately.

“Even as we draw down our personnel, the United States remains deeply and actively committed to supporting regional and international efforts to end the violence in South Sudan, including the vital work of the UN Mission in South Sudan,” said a statement released by the State Department.

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Commanders sent two Marine Corps KC-130 Hercules transport planes to bring out the State Department workers, said Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren. One landed in Juba while the other circled overhead as a safety precaution. American aircraft have previously come under attack in attempting to bring out Americans from South Sudan; four special operators were hurt when “unknown forces” in the ground fired on their CV-22 Ospreys as they approached the town of Bor before Christmas.

A “small security element” of Marines accompanied the aircraft that landed Friday in Juba, Warren said, part of a Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force that has been positioned in Uganda in case the situation in South Sudan continued to deteriorate. Commanders also had sent troops from the East Africa Emergency Response Force to Juba itself to protect American diplomats there.

Warren said that American commanders continue to monitor the situation in Juba in case armed groups march on the city, and that U.S. Africa Command would be ready for more orders if those came.

“We have contingency plans in place,” he said. “We believe we’re well-postured in the region to respond to any requests.”

The reduction in diplomatic personnel means the embassy will no longer provide consular assistance to American citizens, instead redirecting constituents to the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya.

Susan Page, the ambassador to South Sudan, will remain in Juba where she is “in constant communication with South Sudanese officials, UNMISS, and her foreign counterparts,” according to the State Department. Other American citizens are urged to leave the country.

The current crisis has displaced 180,000 South Sudanese since mid-December, with an estimated 15,000 fleeing the country altogether. The conflict represents a major setback in a region where 228,000 refugees have already been displaced by violent clashes in 2011 and 2012.

In addition to the embassy draw down, the State Department also announced an additional $49.8 million in humanitarian aid to South Sudanese victims hurt by the recent wave of violence in the country. The assistance comes in addition to the more than $300 million provided to assist South Sudanese refugees.

“The people of South Sudan deserve a better future — a future that gives them the chance to realize the hopes and dreams they celebrated at independence, not one characterized by the violence, unrest, and instability we see today,” the statement said.